Access to children’s court matters reveals extent of juvenile crime crisis

A 16-year-old’s ­“almost frenetic” crime spree is just one of the many eye-opening cases exposing the gravity of the state’s juvenile crime crisis, after the Queensland Children’s Court opened its doors under new laws.

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Hundreds of youths faced thousands of charges ranging from stealing to murder in the first week of the Queensland Children’s Court opening its doors, giving an unprecedented snapshot of the true extent of the state’s juvenile crime crisis.

The shocking cases that can be reported for the first time include a 16-year-old boy on almost 100 charges after a magistrate said he embarked on a “breathtaking” and ­“almost frenetic” crime spree across the state’s south mere hours after moving to Queensland from NSW.

Multiple cases involved youths allegedly reoffending within days of being released on bail or given probation – ­including a 17-year-old who pleaded guilty to a crime spree that ended in a Pol-Air chase.

Queensland Police footage of a dramatic arrest of a teenager allegedly involved in a crime spree across South East Queensland.

The Courier-Mail had journalists in children’s courts across the state this week as new laws permitting the cases to be reported on came into ­effect this week, after Premier Steven Miles vowed to “put victims first” and end closed-court proceedings for youth criminals.

While the court was open for the majority of cases across the state, some – including a murder committal hearing for a teenager who allegedly stabbed his mother’s partner on the Sunshine Coast – were closed after successful applications from defence lawyers.

In one of the most startling cases, a 16-year-old faced ­Toowoomba Children’s Court charged with 94 offences relating to an alleged four-day crime spree with four other teens across the state’s south, leaving a trail of destruction.

Within hours of relocating to the state from NSW with his mother to flee a violent gang, the boy is alleged to have ­broken into multiple businesses in Brisbane and the Lockyer Valley, allegedly stealing two vehicles throughout the spree.

Magistrate Michelle Dooley denied the child bail and labelled the alleged offending “extreme in nature” and nothing short of “breathtaking”.

“(The alleged incident) is ­almost frenetic offending, the blatant disregard for CCTV footage,” Ms Dooley said. “I’m very concerned about the ­alleged offending: the volume, seriousness.”

Police footage showed the boys being arrested at a Lockyer Valley home.

In Brisbane Children’s Court, a teen boy pleaded guilty to 13 offences, all committed just three days after he was given probation for “identical” offending. The court heard the boy, 17, had committed the spree of enter premises-type offences in company on June 1, 2024.

The offenders allegedly attempted to gain entry to multiple homes across Brisbane in a single night before they were chased by Pol-Air in a stolen car.

One of the houses the boy attempted to enter had been occupied by a 79-year-old woman, who the court heard had been woken in the early hours of the morning by the intruders.

Police prosecutor Sanghyun Koh submitted that restorative justice was “simply not the right option” for the boy, who he said had been subject to five periods of probation since June 2023.

“All attempts to support and rehabilitate (the boy) have been unsuccessful,” he said.

With less than a year until the boy turned 18, defence lawyer Devyn Wanigesekera said his client was “scared about going to adult prison”.

Magistrate Megan Payne noted the boy’s methamphetamine use had influenced his choice to participate in the offending. “You say you’re scared of adult prison, you should be,” she told him.

“Those people are just living their life, in the comfort of their own home, their castle, and that was intruded upon by you.

“You can imagine the fear and worry that they would have … Those people will feel that fear for a long time.”

Defendants dealt with in Brisbane Children's Court from September 4 to 6.

The boy was sentenced to six months in detention, with immediate release under a four-month conditional release order.

In another Brisbane courtroom, a 14-year-old girl was granted bail despite allegations that she committed a robbery while on bail for another robbery.

The first robbery was alleged to have occurred at Surfers Paradise on December 24, 2023, when the girl was just 13.

She had allegedly been one of a group of girls who approached a girl, 17, in the early hours of morning and asked her for a vape before kicking her in the head and chest when she refused.

The now 14-year-old defendant allegedly committed a further robbery and attempted robbery at Westfield Chermside while on bail for that charge.

The court heard she was now at risk of spending too much time in detention, having been remanded for 76 days.

She was granted bail with a number of conditions, and her charges were committed for a judge-only trial.

Meanwhile, a 15-year-old girl who had already spent 369 days in detention was denied bail in the Brisbane Children’s Court on 113 charges including robbery and attempted robbery because she had no suitable bail address.

One count of robbery while in company involved allegations the girl had been a part of a group of children that attacked a woman, who was travelling on a council bus, with a “significant degree of violence”.

She had previously been granted bail some months ago, but had allegedly committed further offences within 24 hours of her release.

In Cairns, a 16-year-old with a 14-page criminal history pleaded guilty to 41 charges, including enter premises and dangerous operation of motor vehicles.

He was on bail when the offences occurred, and was sentenced to 115 days in detention – which he had already served – and four months’ probation.

In the same court, a teenager from Palm Island was bailed on a rape charge and was granted it to live in Bowen with a no-contact order in relation to the victim.

Originally published as Access to children’s court matters reveals extent of juvenile crime crisis